Disclaimer: I disclaim France.
Chapter 4: Jamais Deux Sans Trois
The real shock of everything that had passed suddenly hit me the second I found my bedroom. I shut the door behind me, left the plastic bag of clothes I had purchased on the chair by my desk and sat on the edge of my bed. I leant forward, elbows on my knees and face in my hands. I felt an ambush of tears and my body shook with the pain of my failures. When I heard my father's steps approach the bedroom I sat up and composed myself.
"Mina….are you alright?"
My father's voice triggered more tears and I wrapped my arms around myself. Everything felt cold and I was beginning to feel sick.
"I'm alright." My voice wavered. It was as though every lie was another stabbing pain and another set of tears.
"I'm heading to bed now. I'll see you in the morning, okay? …Goodnight."
"Goodnight." I whisper and hear his steps pass the door and fade.
I pulled my pillow to my chest and buried my face in the soft cushion. I cried and sobbed as quietly as I could. The scene replayed in my mind over and over. Every moment I thought about it, the worse I felt. I laid on my side and stared at the wall hoping my mind would stop thinking for long enough to allow me to sleep. Sleep brought with it nightmares yet sleeplessness brought the throbbing reminder of my injured shoulder and the unbearable thoughts of failure.
I wondered if I was doing the right thing. They all have such beautiful dreams and I just wanted to protect them. I slipped my hand between my mattress and box spring and felt out for a certain item that I thought would only serve as a reminder. The simple red mask of Sailor V. I watched the mask dissolve in my hand as I willed it to merge with my current transformation. I would protect their dreams with my entire life.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Four in the morning was struck by cheerful chiming again but I hadn't gotten a wink of sleep. Contemplating strategy was exhausting when you had no idea where to begin. I lifted the receiver to my ear and gave an obviously fatigued hello to my friend.
"Are you alright?" I could imagine Rei's sincere expression of worry just by listening to the seriousness in her voice.
"Yes. I just haven't been able to sleep." I said.
"Thinking too much?"
"Me? Thinking? Never."
"One way or the other, I hope you feel better. I've got some information that might cheer up the Guardian of Love." She said.
"Oh? What might that be?"
"Haruka will be proposing to Michiru sometime very soon."
"You saw the ring?" I said excitedly.
"It was gorgeous. But with Haruka's income, you couldn't expect anything less."
"I'm so happy for them! Michiru-chan will be so surprised!"
I sighed happily and I think Rei had done the exact same thing. I did feel a little better just hearing her voice. It reinforced my determination to protect them.
"Do you feel better?" She asked.
"A little bit. I'm glad you called. I might finally be able to get some sleep."
"Oh? Are you saying that I'm boring?"
"No. Comforting is a better word."
After some time, the conversation flowed into stories of how Makoto was getting along with the planning of her bakery. Rei told me that Makoto and the other's had held a sleep over in the building that would accommodate the bakery. I regretted not being there for that. The discussion ended too soon sadly. We both said our goodbyes once again. And I got some sleep.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I woke up quite groggy and rather late in the morning. I trudged downstairs and leafed through the local newspaper as I ate a bowl of cereal. An advertisement for an amusement park flashed by and I quickly turned back to the page. Would it be wrong to try and enjoy myself? It was my vacation after all. It wasn't far. I got dressed and endured the bus ride to the amusement park.
The park itself was congested with far too many whining children and overly hormonal teenagers. But the weather was beautiful and the park was bright and exciting. It was just the sort of place to go to cure some boredom. I watched the rollercoaster 'kamikaze' whip around it's tracks as the occupants in their cars screamed with both delight and terror.
"Well if it isn't Minako Aino. Fancy meeting you here."
I knew that voice well but I truly hadn't expected to hear it on this trip. I turned quickly to find the owner of the lovely, mature voice that was spicy with it's slight French accent. At once, a crowd parted and there she was; only a few feet from me. Morgana Durand. My voice strained over the volume of the crowd to reach the ears of the taller girl.
"I'm sorry, do I know you?"
She stared me down carefully with her piercing, bright green eyes and I watched the breeze play lightly in her black hair. Who could forget their rival? She was the only person in my life to ever put a ball passed me on the court and I was that same thing to her.
"I wouldn't expect someone so popular as you to remember me. Let me refresh your memory… the AT Tournament Finals. Fifth grade."
Who could forget one of their best friends…?
"Oh… I remember now. We kicked your sorry butts that day, didn't we?"
We were both silent for a moment after she laughed off my last comment. She was taller than I remember. She made me miss the old days when we were Minnie (a nickname that wore off quickly) and Morgan: The Unstoppable Duo. Our relationship remained on the courts before and after a match because we never attended the same schools. Fans that attended out games always held a greater interest when we were pitted against each other.
"I'll let that one slide because I missed you so much." She grabbed me in a tight hug. "The game hasn't been the same without you."
"You still play?" I asked when she let me go.
"Professionally. Why? Oh, Minako…don't tell me you--"
"Quit? Yeah, it really wasn't something I could help." This disappointment was there and then gone. "I still play for fun sometimes."
"I hope you haven't lost your touch."
"Oh? That sounds like a challenge."
"It definitely is. But uh…" She looked around suspiciously for a moment than took my hand and led me to a semi-private area of the park. "What is it?" I asked curiously.
"There this old gym building not too far from here. It's not used for anything."
"Abandoned?"
"That's right." Her voice dropped down to a whisper. "A few friends and I are using it to practice. It's kind of a secret. I'm sure everyone would like to meet you."
I grinned and accepted the offer. A game of volleyball was just what I needed to clear my head. With Morgan, it would no doubt be challenging and fun. I told her that we would have to stop off at my house so I could pick up something adequate to wear. I got home, changed and then we jogged all the way to the building of which she spoke.
Abandoned was not quite the term I would have used to describe the building. Decrepit was a better term. Disastrous was also a good expression. The building was fenced off but considering the kind of athletes Morgan and her friends were, it was easily scaled. It's surroundings gave the area the appearance of a junkyard. The exterior of the structure was littered with tags and graffiti: some artistic, some just a waste of space. Glass windows were broken and the only door to the gym was held open by two large cinder blocks. From the door came the sound of a game in play. We entered and I watched a two on two match from the sidelines.
"What do you think?" Morgan finally asked.
I watched a girl dive to keep the ball from reaching it's mark on the floor but she missed by mere centimetres. The inside of the gym walls looked much like the outside but the floor looked as though it had been cleared and taken care of.
"It's fantastic…"
"It's kind of a side project," she began, "I want to bring this place back to life on day."
The game was over when the game ball touched out of bounds. The team to my left, a young man and a girl around my age sighed in defeat. The winning team gave each other a high five than called out. "We're out of her. We'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
Morgan stopped them before they left. "Before you go: This is Minako. Minako, this is Michelle and Michael. They're brother and sister." I waved to them and they told me they had heard a lot about me and looked forward to a game. We moved over to center court and sat underneath the volleyball net with the two who lost the game.
"This is Steven and Vanessa." Morgan sat between the two and I took a seat next to Vanessa and smiled at the both of them. "This is Minako." She pointed at me.
"I used to watch all your games." Steven smiled politely.
I laughed. "It's safer in the stands than on a court with me."
"Vanessa is really good too." Morgan gave the girl a little punch on the shoulder and the girl blushed. "But her real love is for boxing, isn't it?" Another blush from Vanessa and I held back the urge to laugh out loud. This was a relatively small girl, she had shoulder length green hair and kind blue eyes. I could tell that her shyness rivalled Ami's and yet, she was a boxer? …I guess anything can happen.
The topic of a playing a game came up and we drew up our teams. It would simply be unfair to pair me and Morgan against the other two so I took Vanessa and Morgan took Steven. We received first serve and I belted the ball towards a gap on Steven's left side. Usually, the speed and strength of my serve could make a person think twice about getting in front of the ball but he courageously had it bounce off his hands and set it up for his tall partner. Morgan aimed for a gap and spiked the ball towards the ground.
My small partner slid underneath the ball and managed to keep it off the floor with her forearms. I volleyed it back over the net. Steven took a running jump and attempted to spike the ball back over but I blocked the ball and watched it bounce back towards his side and onto the floor.
"Good work." I told my partner and she replied with a small, timid thanks as I passed her the ball. "Your serve."
"Okay." Her voice was barely a whisper.
It was almost impossible to hear her voice over the loud rumbling that began as the building began to shake violently. Morgan tripped and Steven began to help her up. I looked to Vanessa who was staring at the ceiling like a deer caught in the headlights. I made a grab for her and trapped her underneath myself for safety. I dared to look behind me at the bit of ceiling that had almost crushed the girl beneath me and I let out the breath I was holding. It was a near miss. I looked back down to the frightened girl in my arms.
"Are you alright?" Vanessa only nodded. We stood while the ground still shook beneath us and unsteadily made out way over to the others. They weren't hurt. "We have to get out of here now."
"You know…we were thinking about that…" Morgan began sarcastically.
"But..?" I said.
"Well there's the issue of a seven foot monster!" Steven finished in terror.
I shot a look at the door and wondered how I failed to notice. The monster stood in the door way, a hand on each side of the entrance and he seemed to be concentrating on demolishing the whole structure. I looked at the others than I looked at the monster. Damn it.
"Venus crystal power. Make up!" There was no other choice. I didn't take the time to register their reactions. If the monster continued to level this building, Morgan would never be able to revive it to the gym it once was.
"Venus love-me chain!" The light chain lashed out and wrapped itself around the his waist and I began to pull him away from the door. It was too strong and stood it's ground. I heard Morgan shout something from behind me and than I felt a pair of hands around my waist. Another pair grasped my hands and they helped me pull. The monster couldn't hold on much longer and it stumbled forward.
"Get out of here!" I shouted as the monster flung itself at me. I rolled beneath it and countered with a quick crescent beam. The beam landed on it's back but barely scorched it's rough and scaley skin. The creature began to lift fallen pieces of ceiling and chuck them at me. It was simple to crush the rocks with my chain but the monster reloaded far too quickly and the game was becoming fatiguing. My chain flayed out once more to shatter another fragment of ceiling but I was struck by a large splinter. The monster seemed to smirk wickedly and pointed at me. It's eyes lit up while it approached. Than Vanessa appeared between me and the monster dawning a metal pole and a furious sneer.
"No! Don't…" I said breathlessly.
The monster laughed and took a swing at the girl who began to bob and dodge some quick and powerful attacks. I struggled to my feet. Vanessa swung the pole against the monster's side but he was unaffected by the impact. He grabbed the pole and wound up with the other arm. I shouted something useless as I dashed towards them and pushed Vanessa out of the way. I took the blow to my own chest and a hand plunged into my soul. A light stemmed from around his wrist and I felt as though he was squeezing my heart.
I grasped the scaley wrist, hell-bent on not letting it end this way and I concentrated my energy until it pulsed through me like lighting. Very much like electrocution the monster shuddered brutally until it let go of me and fell back. I fell to my knees, clutched my chest and took deep, steadying breaths.
"Minako!" Three sets of voices called me all at once and were instantly at my side. I didn't answer them but watched carefully the crispy fiend in front of us. I spotted the slight rise and fall of it's chest and rose to the opportunity to perform a proper interrogation. Standing over him, I looped my golden chain around his neck and squeezed. I listened to his raspy breaths for a moment as he struggled under the constriction.
"You're the first I've managed to keep alive… that makes you special so I'll try to be patient."
His reply was rough and gurgled in a language that wasn't quite human. But by tone I could tell it wasn't very polite. "Simple questions, really. Important questions. Who, where and why?" I loosed the chain to wait for the answers I wanted.
"They will have the souls of the warriors who protect this planet. Your soul!" He snarled.
"Mm… Is that so? Sounds exciting." I tightened the chain once more than loosened. "Who? Who are these 'they?'" He seemed to hesitate so I squeezed once more. He vehemently began to grasp at the chain but had no luck with it. In the midst of a furious struggle to loosen my weapon, his frustration brought him to blurt out a name. "Lamia! Lamia save m--" It was the last he shouted before he mysteriously burst to dust beneath me. Saved? No. Sacrificed.
I leant heavily on one knee and tried to calm my nerves. It was never just the adrenaline and anxiety that made us shake in battle… the anger and frustration had a part in it. Lamia and my soul.
"Minako…?" I stiffened when I heard my name and remembered my audience. I de-transformed and turned to take responsibility for my actions. Morgan stood closest, the other two a little behind. Steven held Vanessa steady on her feet. "I always knew there was something about you…"
"Surprise…" I whispered after a moment.
Morgan looked back at the other two. "You know things won't be the same?"
I felt hurt and betrayed… but why should I have felt they would keep my secret? I couldn't face them. Why was it so wrong to want to protect people?
"We're not strong but I'm sure we can help. Isn't that write, Steven?"
"Sure, Morgan… we'll have to get together and talk about this though."
I did a double-take and tripped over my own thoughts for a second. Morgan gave a sly grin and something of a cheap Sailor V pose. "You didn't think we were going to sell out a hero, did you?" I gave a small, uncomfortable laugh and looked to the others. Than I remembered something.
"Oh no, there's no way I can let you guys get into this. Considering what I heard here today and their pattern of attack, it's pretty obvious they're tracking me down. It's really only a matter of time until--"
"Than we'll protect you." Vanessa let go of Steven and made her way towards me. The certainty in her voice led me to believe that they could actually do that…
"Like I said," Steven began, "We'll have to talk."
I nodded and looked at Morgan. "I'm not making any promises." We all agreed on a meeting place and time than left for our separate homes. Though Morgan had decided to walk me home, we both had separate thoughts that kept a majority of the trip rather silent. I was sure she had questions like the others; she would have to wait.
There was something I needed to do…
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I anxiously waited for Rei to pick up her phone. Another early morning wake-up call for my favourite over-worked shrine maiden. After seven rings, a click signalled that she had picked up her phone and I gave her a cheerful hello.
"This can't be healthy." She mumbled.
"But you love every second of it, don't you?"
"Or sane… it's definitely not sane." She said.
"Cheer up, Rei-chan… it's a wonderful night!"
"Morning and it's raining." She groaned. "And I have to clear the things…the gutters. Are you feeling better?"
"I feel great."
"I think I can tell when you're lying now; even if I can't see you."
"Oh? You can see when I lie?" I asked.
"In your eyes. But don't change the subject."
"I'm alright, Rei-chan." I couldn't keep the small smile from creeping onto my face. "You worry too much."
"You're rubbing off on me then."
A loud noise in the background indicated that Rei was now needed elsewhere. I frowned and realized she wouldn't be going back to sleep after this phone call.
"I have to go." She sighed. "Damn Yuurichiro…"
"Go easy on him. He loves you."
"Well, I don't love him."
"Harsh."
A bit of teasing and the conversation was over for the day. I was beginning to absolutely miss home and all my friends. Tomorrow would bring some complicated lines of questioning and I wasn't looking forward to it.
Author's Notes Part 2: Well, that's a pretty spiffy chapter for you right there! Next one should be here eventually. School is starting up again so I'll have less time to do these but they will get done! A promise is a promise. See you later, folks.